Roasted Butternut Squash Soup

Happy New Year! In 2011 - as soon as I bought the immersion blender last February - I started experimenting with blended veggie soups. They're hearty, pretty easy to make (if you have a couple hours) and a delicious way to get your veggies in. I've made squash, asparagus, sweet potato, jerusalem artichoke, celery root etc. My friends Lindsey and Liz came over for dinner in December and raved about the butternut squash soup I'd made with dinner. Today, Lindsey came over to make some with me and learn how-to. So much fun! :)

Lindsey picked out some nice squash!

Here's my #1 soup tip: use the SAME base, every single time for fool-proof veggie soup broth: mirepoix (about equal amounts of carrots, onions and celery)+ garlic + salt. Cover it with 6-8 cups of water. After it cooks down for almost an hour, then add whatever vegetable(s) you choose and experiment with other herbs, spices and fats. Either blend or leave chunky.

Prep time: 20 min, Total time: approx 1.5 - 2 hours
Makes: 8+ servings

Roasted Butternut Squash Soup
Ingredients:

1 large butternut squash (3.5 - 4 lbs) halved and "guts" scooped out
1 medium yellow onion (diced)
3 medium stalks celery (diced)
3 medium sized carrots (diced)
2 cloves garlic (sliced or minced)
2 oz Organic Half-and-half or heavy cream (Optional)
Olive oil
Sea Salt
Pepper
Cumin
Nutmeg
Turmeric (Optional, but adds great color and is a wonderful anti-oxident)


Equipment:

Large cast-iron ceramic coated pot (or just a large spaghetti/soup pot)
Immersion blender or regular blender

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375. Prep all veggies. Heat your big pot to medium-high and add a tablespoon of olive oil.

Once the oil is hot, throw your mirepoix in and let it go, stirring occasionally, for several minutes. Once the veggies start steaming and smelling super fragrant and soft, add 1 tbsp sea salt, approx 1 tsp pepper, 1 tsp cumin and 1 tsp (optional) turmeric. Sautee for another 30 seconds or so while stirring. (We'll add the nutmeg in at the end.)

Mirepoix: the fancy french term for equal parts of carrots, celery and onion

Cover the veggies with about 4 times their volume in water. Turn to high and once it comes up to a boil, turn the heat down and let simmer.

Roast your squash for about 35 minutes, until you can easily stick a fork through the skin. Let cool about 20 min.

Scoop the squash out of the skin and add to the simmering soup base. Let cook together 15 minutes or so.

In goes the squash! The pretty yellow color at this point comes from turmeric.

With your blender or immersion blender (aka best $50 I've spent) and blend until smooth.

Linds giving the immersion blender a whirl

Add 1-2 tsp nutmeg (according to your preference) and add the cream. If you DON'T add cream, I suggest adding a bit of fat (a healthy cold-pressed oil like olive, coconut, grape seed, avocado or some organic butter) to balance out the flavor. Stir and turn heat off.

A spill on my shirt. Typical.

Serve hot. I served with a plate of super foods! We had: wild caught pink salmon, sauteed garlicky kale with lemon and smashed "creamsicle" (white and sweet mixed) potatoes. Delicious and probably one of the most balanced, nutritious plates you could ask for:


Highly anti-inflammatory and off the charts in vitamin A, C, K and B6. IT's a great source of protein, omega-3, calcium, selenium, potassium, magnesium, maganese, copper, etc. This meal is pretty much SMACK dab in the middle of balanced (fat, protein, carb) and very rich in vitamins and minerals.

I generally make a big pot of soup like this once a week on Sunday...that way we can enjoy it for lunch during the week. Pick a favorite veggie and try it!